Full Spectrum Warrior: Ten Hammers

In a crowded genre filled with military shooters that take gamers through the historic campaigns of World War II to the more current confrontations in the Middle-East, an original game from THQ and Pandemic Studios called Full Spectrum Warrior took gaming critics and gamers by surprise. Not only was it a combat-heavy game but it was also a real-time tactical strategy simulator that was not only realistic but a fun, thinking gamers’ title. So is it a big surprise that a sequel is soon to be released on the Xbox? We get our hands on a demo of Full Spectrum Warrior: Ten Hammers and all I can say this is that this is certainly looking like a tour of duty well worth taking.

The demo (of the main single-player campaign mode only) begins in a region in the fictionalized country of Zekistan (a region that obviously mirrors that of Baghdad as well as Afghanistan) as a news reporter and his cameraman ride along with the boys of Alpha squad. As the reporter introduces each soldier, Alpha’s leader, Sergeant Randolph receives orders to link up with Bravo team who suddenly find themselves going up against local insurgents. Jumping into their Humvees they reach the area and quickly find themselves in the thick of battle.

Like the first game, you don’t take direct control of a soldier in the way you would most third-person shooters but rather you move your entire squad via a movement cursor that positions your squad anywhere in the environment. Where you place the cursor is up to you because this game leaves the strategy up to the gamer. Returning fans of the original will notice that the basic movements and commands haven’t changed at all and that in itself is a good thing. Thankfully, the demo of the game’s first chapter also serves as a tutorial so say goodbye to that long and burdensome training tutorial from the first game.

Yet linking up with Bravo isn’t going to be easy because the outdoor environments of the game once again will prove to be a challenge. You will be met by insurgent fire while attempting to provide cover for other US Forces that happen to be in the area. Providing covering fire once again requires you to issue the commands rather than doing the shooting yourself (an aspect of the game that has thrown off action fans but put smiles on any military strategy fan’s face). Yet here’s some good news, action fans, one of the many new features in the game just so happens to be Precision Fire, a feature that allows you control the firing reticule of your squad’s sharpshooter and aim it at the enemy. The bad news is that doing so exposes your rifleman to enemy fire so you have to be quick with your shots. Again, ordering covering fire means your men will automatically start providing covering fire when needed and trust me you’ll need it since linking up with Bravo means you’ll also be able to take command of this second squad.

Like the first game you can switch back and forth between Alpha and Bravo with the push of the Y button and while you can have Alpha advance to a mission objective (seen as a blue marker), Bravo provides the covering fire needed to allow Alpha to make a move during skirmishes. Joining the new Precision Fire feature is the Buddy Team feature that can break your squad into groups of twos. This especially comes in handy when a fellow squad member is injured in battle and needs to be returned to CASEVAC point to get medical treatment as well as pick up a replacement squad member. CASEVAC points are once again also used to replenish ammo.

One of the interesting new twists in the game is that you’ll be able to go into certain buildings for a better vantage point. In the demo, Alpha enters a civilian house and uses the window for a better vantage point of an area with very little cover. The real treat, though, comes in the form of Charlie that is composed of a Bradley APC tank complete with heavy machine gun and mounted cannon. Moving the Bradley tank is a lot like moving the tank in both Brothers In Arms games and it could be used to provide cover for your squad as well. Lastly, there’s Delta, yet another additional fire team that comes in the form of a very useful sniper. One aspect of the game that isn’t mentioned in the short demo is the Fog of War feature from the first game that allows you to “rewind” back the time before you made a fatal mistake.

Visually speaking, Ten Hammers looks almost identical to the first Full Spectrum Warrior and that’s not a bad thing considering the original sported some truly stunning visual effects as well as beautifully detailed environments and character models. The locales practically breathe with life and the combat looks as fierce as ever and the behind-the-back camera of shake as the squad makes a move just add to the overall visceral experience.  

While the demo comes to a very abrupt end (with your commanding officer barking “You’ll have to buy the game to see how the rest of this unfolds because I have to get paid”), Ten Hammers promises 12 levels with a Friends or Foe online multiplayer mode as well as a Co-op mode you can play with up to eight players via System Link or online. With all these new features and returning favorites, Full Spectrum Warrior: Ten Hammers is already turning out to be a real Must-Have game for any fan of squad-based tactical combat games.

Full Spectrum Warrior: Ten Hammers is heading for the Xbox, PC and the PS2 and we’ll have a full review of the game when it ships this March.